“FOR your hearts are like your mountains/in the homes of Donegal

The line from the Donegal anthem, popularised by Paul Brady could have been written especially for John Boyle, the octogenarian harness horseman who showed last Sunday that he still has the winning touch.

John is originally from Portnoo in Donegal, about as far from West Cork as you can get. He went to London for five years before settling in Co Cork in 1969. John’s wife Sheila was a Curran from Doneraile, which explains the move. Unfortunately, Sheila passed away five years ago.

John’s friends and admirers were concerned about him as he had to miss the last few meetings in his region in 2022 due to a bad toss at Lyre. However, the injury was not as bad as it looked, and Boyle is remarkably hardy.

“Supreme Sunshine is out of a Stoneriggs mare bred by the Slacks in Cumbria. I have raced her to a ripe old age as she was always in the money. I bought her from my good friend Billy Barry as a yearling. I broke her and did everything myself.”

“I bought IB Felicity from the Murphys and she has given me great sport as well. She also ran well on Sunday, but she was pulling very hard.”

On the road

“Billy Barry introduced me to the sport. We used to go to the road trotting together and we try to get to Tregaron (Wales) and Appleby (Cumbria) every year ‘’

“John Joe Walsh and his son Brendan let me use the gallop at their National Hunt yard, so I am grateful. The surface is wood chip and you know I only shoe my horses coming up to a race. ‘’

Whether it’s his eye for a nice mare or the wood chip surface – there is no doubt that the man dubbed ‘The Pacing Pensioner’ has been a great success in harness racing.